


Bone Bros Made From Toes: Handplates AU Analysis

by ArgentDandelion



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Handplates (Undertale), Angst, Cognitive Dissonance, Gen, Heroes to Villains, Nonfiction, Psychology, Science, Villains
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-25
Updated: 2017-07-25
Packaged: 2020-09-28 16:27:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20428937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArgentDandelion/pseuds/ArgentDandelion
Summary: An analysis of W.D. Gaster's (of Handplates) gradual descent into villainy, from the angle of cognitive dissonance.





	Bone Bros Made From Toes: Handplates AU Analysis

_“The more costly a decision, in terms of time, money, effort or inconvenience, and the more irrevocable its consequences, the greater the need to reduce it by overemphasizing the good things about the choice made.” p.22, [Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me)](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FMistakes_Were_Made_%28But_Not_by_Me%29&t=OGI0Y2ZiN2Q1ZTY3NWEwZmFkNDAxZTA1ZGEyYzYzMzFlNWY3YjkxZCw0bkZaTUk5TQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AHZZTbr56CX-Pu8cYzedJTw&p=https%3A%2F%2Fargentdandelion.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F163419830412%2Fbone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis&m=1)_

* * *

In the [Handplates AU](http://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/139516306171/okay-i-get-a-lot-of-questions-about-what-order-the) work, Gaster made Sans (1-S) and Papyrus (2-P) from samples of his own body. These samples were extracted by cutting out disks of bone from his hands[1](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fn:1) with a laser—a very painful process. Afterwards, he drills tracking plates onto his test subjects’ (or “living tools”) hands, an extremely painful process for them that marks the beginning of their suffering.

However, the decision to drill the plates in was not easy for him. His internal conflict was represented by the _Undertale_ battle options of FIGHT and MERCY. At that point, he was close to discontinuing the experiment, as chosen by almost selecting MERCY. So what tipped the scales toward FIGHT?

  
It’s probably [cognitive dissonance](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FCognitive_dissonance%23Examples&t=MGYxZTI2MTJhZjIwZjQ0NzY2OTllY2MzYTdkYzYwMDhhZmRlZmEzNiw0bkZaTUk5TQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AHZZTbr56CX-Pu8cYzedJTw&p=https%3A%2F%2Fargentdandelion.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F163419830412%2Fbone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis&m=1).

In “[Hole Punching](http://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/144071031447/so-for-how-much-control-gaster-has-over-his)”, Gaster put some time and effort into putting a “mechanism” in place, and checked his calculations several times. Even before the painful laser-cutting he had an investment of time and effort. Later, when he considered choosing MERCY, it seems the holes in his hands just reminded him of his investment.

Think about hazing in college fraternities. Through the [effort justification](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FEffort_justification&t=MzgyNTdhNDNlY2JiMzZmZmFjY2MwYmIxNzdkMjMwYzlkMWY1MTlhZiw0bkZaTUk5TQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AHZZTbr56CX-Pu8cYzedJTw&p=https%3A%2F%2Fargentdandelion.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F163419830412%2Fbone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis&m=1) effect, members of fraternities who have to go through severe hazing come to value the group more.[2](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fn:3)

If the time, pain, and effort Gaster expended caused him to choose FIGHT, would reducing his prior investment make him more likely to choose MERCY?

He could have chosen a less painful and easier way to extract material. For example, he could have chosen his pinky toes.[3](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fn:2) In Handplates [canon](http://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/136714408390/a-dangerous-pointless-distraction-nothing-more), limb detachment for a skeleton is “completely normal and entirely painless”. Furthermore, in a [later](http://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/158568101003/previous-next-as-usual-papyrus-keeps-pushing) comic, Papyrus voluntarily detaches three of his fingers (all three segments of phalanges) with no pain.

What if Gaster could pop off his toes in a similar way? What if he used those to grow his test subjects, instead of hand disks? It wouldn’t be extremely painful, nor would it require specially-made machines other than the gestation tubes.

Gaster could also have simply taken anesthesia during the extraction process to greatly reduce the discomfort of the procedure.[4](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fn:4)

Without the same levels of pain, time, and effort expended, would Gaster have been so dedicated to continue the experiment despite its cruelty? After all, Gaster isn’t inherently a sadistic, cruel person, but someone who thinks he has no choice but to continue.

* * *

  1. In Handplates, unlike human skeletons skeleton monsters’ hands have solid pieces of bone where the carpals and metacarpals would be. [↩︎](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fnref:1)

  2. For more information, see _Social Psychology: Fourth Edition_. [↩︎](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fnref:3)

  3. Also known as “little toes”. If skeleton monsters walk and balance just like humans, removing the pinky toe would cause very little (if any) harm to walking and balance. [↩︎](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/163419830412/bone-bros-made-from-toes-handplates-au-analysis#fnref:2)

  4. It’s unclear if monsters even have anesthetics. The comic’s description says: “One may ask why he isn’t using any kind of anesthetic but let’s be real here, there’s a bunch of you who’ve wanted to see him suffer for a long time for all the awful things he’s done and this is the perfect opportunity, so how could I deprive anyone of that?"


End file.
